


Day

by SoDoRoses (FairyChess)



Series: LAOFT Extras [93]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Healing, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Past Abuse, maybe qualifies as compulsive behaviors, past trauma, slow healing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-27
Updated: 2020-01-27
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:48:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22436653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FairyChess/pseuds/SoDoRoses
Summary: “I had a dream about you last night. I was alone on a dark night and you came to me as a firefly. I knew it was you because you were the brightest.”-Crystal Hudson
Relationships: Background LAMP, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders
Series: LAOFT Extras [93]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1365505
Comments: 25
Kudos: 478





	Day

**Author's Note:**

> takes place almost-but-not-quite two years after the main story line (more specifically, the winter break of Logan’s freshman year of college)
> 
> for the prompts:
> 
> "If you’re still accepting prompts, can I please request Roman Angst?? (not a character death like Farewell though, please. I was a Puddle Of Tears, it was amazing) but yeah, I’m hecking OBSESSED with laoft Much love" (from an anon)  
> "(i’m sending you so many asks today and i’m sorry if it’s too much) but that witch rune ask made me think — how did the others end up noticing the day rune habit of roman’s? (intended as a prompt, but you don’t have to take it as one if you don’t want to)" (from @airiervessel )
> 
> both on tumblr!
> 
> you can see an image of the Dagaz rune [here](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dagaz)
> 
> thank you [@trivia-goddess](trivia-goddess.tumblr.com) for beta reading! you are a delight, and also rad, and also delightfully rad

One of Patton’s favorite things about cuddling with Roman was the spelling game.

Roman loved to draw little nonsense patterns on their skin, the loop-and-drag of the tips of his fingers tracing out shapes and lines. It got even cuter when Roman had sheepishly explained that they were sigils – that he was pressing his magic, drawing love and protection and safety right into their skin.

But it wasn’t always sigils – sometimes on Patton it was drawing constellations between his freckles, and other times he was just spelling out sweet-talk.

_I love you._

_You’re beautiful._

_Sweetheart._

_My love._

Roman never volunteered which one he was doing, not unless someone asked. So Patton made a game of it, focusing on the soft, warm patterns Roman drew and trying to see if he could recognize letters or star map shapes in the lines.

Patton had gotten very good at the spelling game – he could do it on Virgil and Logan, too, when he could see Roman’s fingers.

He didn’t mean to spy.

The two of them had been on the couch in Patton’s parents’ living room, Patton sitting with his legs up on the cushions and Roman laying on his stomach, his arms around Patton’s waist and his head pillowed on Patton’s belly. Virgil and Logan were sharing the recliner across from them, both of them fast asleep.

Patton thought Roman was well on his way to joining them – he was practically purring in Patton’s lap as Patton ran fingers through his hair, humming softly and watching the snow come down in big fluffs out the living room window.

Patton wasn’t sure what had done it (later, he’d ask Roman, to see if he could avoid whatever he might have done, but Roman wouldn’t know either - “just one of those things,” he’d say with a shrug and a wan smile that made Patton’s heart break just a little), but he definitely noticed that abrupt way Roman had gotten up from the couch.

But Roman had smiled disarmingly, said he was going to make some hot chocolate and did Patton want any and Patton didn’t want to push if he was wrong about Roman being upset, so-

He waited. At five minutes, he started to feel anxious, and at ten he got up and made his way to the kitchen, a pit in his stomach.

The cups of cocoa were sitting on the counter, and Roman was frowning down at them with a look of furious concentration on his face. He had one hand gripping the other bicep, just under his t-shirt sleeve, knuckles white, and his index finger was rapidly repeating the same shape over and over.

“…Roman?” said Patton softly.

Startling, Roman looked up and smiled too-bright at Patton in the door, his hand dropping immediately.

“Hey, Gol- Patton-cake,”

Roman winced, barely, and Patton pretended he didn’t notice, smiling back.

“Didja get lost, sweetie?” he teased gently, crossing the kitchen and hesitantly reaching for Roman.

Relaxing, Roman didn’t hesitate to gather Patton up in his arms and set his cheek on top of Patton’s head with a relieved sigh. Patton’s stomach was squirming.

“Sorry,” Roman mumbled, “Just got lost in thought, I guess,”

They swayed back and forth, and Roman started tracing something on Patton’s back – Patton took a deep breath.

“Hey, honey?”

He sounded a little more solemn than he meant to, and Roman tensed immediately.

Patton ran his hand down Roman’s arm until he held Roman’s hand in his own.

“What’s this?” he asked softly, drawing the shape in Roman’s palm. A sideways hourglass, as best Patton had been able to tell from across the room.

Roman inhaled deeply, a little shaky.

“It’s a rune,” he croaked.

Patton ran a thumb across Roman’s knuckles, waiting.

“What rune?” he asked after a moment.

Swallowing, Roman smiled weakly.

“Dagaz,” he said, which meant nothing to Patton, and then-

“It’s the ‘Day’ rune,”

Patton’s heart clenched a little, and then even worse when Roman pulled him closer again so he could hide his face in Patton’s hair.

Patton shifted to squeeze Roman around the ribs, nuzzling firmly into his neck when Roman wrapped his arms tight around Patton’s shoulders and let out a long, shuddering breath.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Patton murmured.

Another shaky sigh, and Roman pressed his face even firmer to the top of Patton’s head.

“I don’t want…”

He trailed off, and Patton didn’t push even though his tongue was nearly burning with all the questions he wanted to ask.

“I don’t want to be… like this. With you,” he choked.

Patton’s brow furrowed.

“Like what, honey?”

He felt Roman frown.

“You know. Night. Dark, not- not like I should be,”

Patton stroked up and down Roman’s spine a few times, before pulling back, confused. Reaching up and cradling Roman’s face, he tried to think of how to say what he wanted to without sounding dismissive.

“Sweetheart,” he said, stroking Roman’s cheek, “I’m… I’m not sure what you mean? You don’t…”

He searched Roman’s face for anything that might clue him in and found… nothing. Sometimes Patton _could_ tell, usually when Roman was angry – sometimes when he was being particularly cocky, or even a rare bit of flirting that was clearly more Night than Day, but right now? Nothing.

He shook his head a little.

“Baby, you don’t seem any different to me,” he finished.

Roman blinked a few times.

“… Really?”

Patton shook his head.

Roman bit his lip.

“I feel- I feel like it’s obvious,” he said weakly.

“Why?” prompted Patton.

“Because-”

He wavered, shaking his head miserably.

“I don’t know how to explain it,” he said, “I just am, right now. The wrong me, the wrong- wrong Roman,”

Patton shook his head immediately.

“There is no wrong Roman,” he said firmly.

Roman gave him a brittle smile.

“I _mean_ it,” said Patton, “No part of you is wrong. No part of you is bad, or- or-”

“Broken?” said Roman, a twinge of bitterness in his voice.

“Definitely _not,_ ” said Patton, frowning. Roman didn’t seem convinced.

“I love you,” said Patton.

“I know,”

“I mean I love _you,_ right now,” said Patton, “Night you. _This_ Roman. I don’t love only some of you, or only the easy parts,”

Smiling, he stroked Roman’s face with his thumb again.

“I love everything about you, sweetie,” he said thickly, “ _Everything_. No exceptions,”

Roman pressed his lips firmly, his eyes quickly going shiny, and Patton made a wordless noise of distress.

But then Roman smiled, shaking his head and leaning down to kiss Patton’s forehead even as he was clearly trying not to cry.

“I love you, too,” he said, choked, “With- with everything I am,”

Pulling him in close again, Roman held him tight, swaying in the middle of the kitchen while the cocoa went cold beside them, but all Patton felt was warm.

**Author's Note:**

> you can also find me over at [@tulipscomeinallsortsofcolors](tulipscomeinallsortsofcolors.tumblr.com) over on tumblr!


End file.
